One and The Same
by Hope Loneheart
Summary: Takes place between ch 34 & 37, after the fight with Annie and before they leave for wall rose. Now that Eren has shown better control in his titan form the experiments can continue. Hanji takes Eren back to the scouting team's caste. As Eren becomes better at transforming and keeping control in his titan form it seem he's becoming more at one with his titan powers even as a human.
1. After the fight

**AN: Well this is my first true stab at a fanfic. The events in this fic takes ****place between ch 34 & 37, after Eren awakens from his fight with Annie and before they leave for wall rose. As this is my first time publishing a fanfic any and all reviews will be appreciated. This story will span 3 or so chapters. As this is my first time I may take a while to finish this so please bare with me! Thank you for your time! For your consideration this fanfic is shipping free.  
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"No, I… I'd better stay here" Jean and Armin were heading up with the soldier that had called for them to join the meeting with the commander. As the three left, Mikasa turned her attention back to the sleeping Eren. She wanted to be there for him when he woke up, no matter how long she had to remain seated. How long will he stay like this Mikasa wondered as she lowered her head giving off a small sigh. It had been a hard fight for all of them. Eren had taken a brutal beating in his titan forum, had managed to restrain Annie, help with getting her out of her Titan and managed to keep conscious for a brief moment before passing out. Mikasa ran a finger over the scar on her cheek and then kept still as she waited for Eren to wake.

"This way please." The soldier was opining a door for Armin to enter. Armin looked to Jean before going in "What are you going to do now?" he asked. Jean grimaced for a moment and then turned around "Get some sleep, I think. We can't all be important enough to meet with the commander and that's fine by me. I could use a brake after today." With that Jean took off, intending to make his way to the barracks but stopped when he saw someone in his way. Captain Levi was making his way to the meeting and was giving Jean a cold stare. "You will wait out here for us." He instructed Jean as he passed by him. Jean turned his head, looking over to see Levi usher Armin into the room "and that's an order." With that the door closed behind them, the soldier standing at attention. Jean sighed deeply and then turned back and leaned against the wall off to the right side of the door.

"Any word from Hanji on getting Annie out?" Erwin ask around the table. Levi looked over to Erwin "None yet. I've just come from the cell we've placed her in. So far all attempts to break the crystal have failed" Erwin jotted this down in his notes and then looked back up. "In about three days' time we will be meeting with the heads of the Military Police to discuss what has taken place today and where we go from there." Erwin pushed his chair back and stood up, walking over to a nearby window and looked out. He could see the dark patch covering the hole in the wall where a colossal eye would be peering out. "What we do know now is that Eren is not the only person within these walls who can turn into a titan. After today we have to assume there are more out there. Like Annie and Eren, we need to find out who may pose a threat to humanity." Erwin turned back to face all in the room "Both titans have come from the 104th Corps, so if there are more we can also assume it would be from them." Armin looked down at his hands. Was it true? Could more of the people he had grown to trust turn out to be enemies? "We will also observe other new Graduates who may show signs of mistrust but the 104th will be our main concern."

At that moment Hanji entered the room, another member of the survey corps closing the door behind her. Levi and Armin turned their heads to see here. "Amazing!" She said dreamily as she found a seat. "Like nothing I've ever seen! We'll try some more over the next few days but that crystal is even harder than the walls!" Hanji sat down, a small grin on her face. Armin frowned, still looking at his hand. "Eren was pretty good eh? He kept on goal this time" Hanji continued. Armin looked up, turning to Erwin and looked him in the eyes. "How will you be observing us, sir?" Armin tried to keep his emotions off of his face but he was no Mikasa, there was hurt in his eyes. "We will take your peers and the others off duty and place them in some of our more remote areas in wall rose." Armin's eye flashed for a moment "My peers, sir? Am I not going to be under observation too?" "No. I believe you and Mikasa have proven that you pose no threat to humanity." Armin thought inwardly to himself: as long as humanity poses no threat to Eren, then Mikasa will be fine. "I'll want Jean with us too." Armin, Erwin and Hanji turned to Levi who was leaning back on his chair, his arms crossed. "I could use a pair of hands to help well mine are out of commission" Erwin's face was stone cold as he spoke "Can we be sure that Jean is no enemy of humanity?" "Yes!" Armin had shot to his feet "…Yes, sir! He played an important part in today's mission and I've seen no reason to suspect him." Erwin looked from Armin to Levi and then nodded his head. "Very well then. Now we need to discuss what our next move is." "Sir?" Armin had a confused look on his face. "OUR next move, Armin. I have to prepare my report for when we meet with the MP in three days' time and something needs to be done with Eren."

Hanji's eyes lit up. "So will we be allowed to continue with my experiments then?" Armin looked over at her, slightly concerned for Eren's sake. Erwin nodded "This may very well be the only chance you get. As everyone will be too preoccupied with repairs, meetings and observations to worry about what Eren is doing, as long as he is still under our watch. You, Captain Levi, Jean, Armin and Mikasa will take Eren to the scout's castle. However you will only have three days as you and Levi will need to be present for the MP meeting. And Eren will be brought back here well we are occupied with the meeting." Armin nodded in comprehension. At least this time he and Mikasa will get to stay with Eren. Erwin made his way to the door as Levi, Hanji and Armin stood. "I assume Eren is still asleep but it would be best if you moved right away, as there isn't much time to work with." They all nodded and left the room.

Armin, Hanji, Levi and Jean were all making their way down to the cells where Eren and Mikasa were. Once the four of them were at the cell with Mikasa and Eren, the plan for the next few days were laid out to Jean and Mikasa, as Eren was still in a deep sleep. "So you think there are more traitors like Annie in our class?" Jean asked to Levi. Levi simply nodded and Hanji walked over to Mikasa and place a hand on her shoulder. "As we're short on time we're going to move him well he's still sleeping. We have a cart ready to go so I'll call for some guards to come move him now." Mikasa stood up, causing Hanji's arm to fall to her side. "That won't be necessary" Mikasa said and she bent down and scooped up Eren in her arms, the blanket still over him. She turned around, her eyes fierce as always Hanji took a step back and Jean scrambled out of Mikasa's way. Armin was on the other side of the bars, as the cell was too small for all of them. Armin watched as Levi led the way back up to the main level followed by Mikasa and Jean. Hanji left the cell last and stopped Armin before he followed suit. "Has she always been able to carry Eren like that?" Hanji asked. Armin looked at Hanji and saw something… odd in her eyes, though he couldn't quite place what it was. "Err… Yah! Mikasa is really strong. They're both the same height and well it may not look like it, Mikasa is actually heaver then Eren but it's all mussels!" That odd look in Hanji's eyes seemed to disappear with that answer and she passed Armin to head up with the other, Armin taking off after her. Mikasa gently rested Eren on the cart once Levi and Jean were seated on one side. Armin and Hanji Sat on the other and Mikasa sat on the floor of the cart near Eren's head as they set off for the Survey Corps Castle.


	2. Latter that night

**AN: Well here's chapter 2! I'm sorry if it seems like things are moving slow in the story. Not to worry! I'm just building momentum, as you'll see at the end of this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think! The next chapter will probably take longer as I've got a lot of shifts at my job this week.**

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Eren stirred as the cart was jostled from the bumpy road leading up to the castle. His eyes opened and the first thing they saw was the orange sky. The sun had started to set on the horizon as Eren lifted himself to see where he was now. It was something he knew he would have to get used to, not knowing where he was after fighting as a titan. There was a pothole in the road and Eren lost hold and was going to slip back down, bumping his head on the wooded floor of the cart. He closed his eyes to brace for impact but a pair of hand caught him. He looked up blinking, there was Mikasa. Her eyes were wide but she looked unharmed. Good Eren thought to himself, I didn't hurt her this time. Eren could see the scar he had left on her from before. Once Eren was able to sit up he looked around to see who else was there. Captain Levi and Jean were sitting on one side and Hanji and Armin were on the other. Looking over his shoulder he could see two other members of the scouting legion guiding the cart. He had seen them before, but didn't know their names.

"It's about time you woke up, brat" Levi said, looking coolly at Eren. "We're almost at the castle. You've been asleep most of the day and it looks like we won't have much time to get anything done tonight." Looking away from Levi, Eren could see the scouting castle as they drew near it. "What are we here for? What about Annie? Am I still going being called to see the King?" Eren might have to get used to not knowing where he was after becoming a titan but he could never get used to not knowing what's going on afterword's. Armin spoke up first "Your meeting with the King is off for now." Armin thought it would be best to get the simple answers out of the way first. Hanji spoke next "Annie is in our custody…" Eren looked over to Hanji "Have we gotten anything out of her yet?" Everyone looked away as Hanji continued "She's sealed herself up in a crystal of some sort. So far all attempts to break it have failed." Eren gave off a small snort "that cowered." He cursed under his breath. "As for why we're here" Hanji went on "we have a small window of opportunity to do some more experiments with you." Eren's eye went wide when the word "experiments" fell on his ears. "It seems you've gotten better at staying in control when you're a titan. We have a few days before we're all summoned back to the inner walls so now is the best chance for us to see what you can do!" Hanji had a gleam in her eyes as she thought about the days to come. "It's a shame I never did get an answer from Annie if her real limbs would grow back" Levi said carelessly and he turned his head to the castle.

"Eren, how are you feeling?" Everyone was seated at the dining table finishing up their dinner. Eren was playing with the last of his food, a lot on his mind. He looked over to Mikasa who was sitting across from him. "I'm fine. Just a little out of it I guess." Well at least that's partly true Eren thought to himself. How could I be fine but I was still out of it. "I don't suppose that you're up for an experiment tonight then?" Hanji was sitting at the end of the table, her meal long gone. "What did you have in mind?" Eren knew that when Hanji had an idea, there was no hiding from it and it would be best to act on it sooner than later. She pushed up her glasses as she looked at a note beside her plate. "Well I would like to see how long you can stay active in your titan form during the night." It seemed simple enough. In fact it seemed too simple, Eren though. Would that be a strong enough goal to turn? Eren looked at his hand, it had healed from his last transformation but he can still remember the pain of biting hard enough but not transforming. Eren then looked around the table. Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Levi… He had to master his titan powers, for them and for all the soldiers that have already died. Eren nodded to Hanji and stood up. "Are you sure you're up to this, Eren?" It was Armin that gave his concern this time. "I have to be the master of this power, or else I could pose a risk to you and everyone else" Eren clenched his fist as he spoke. The pains of the bites are nothing compared to the pains of losing himself to the titan's wrath and hurting the ones he cares about. With that everyone stood and made their way outside to where they would see if Eren could transform in the night.

"Ok just like last time, I'll fire the signal flare to show when we're ready for you." Hanji shouted as she leaned on the edge of the well. Eren was at the bottom of the well once again but this time he felt more confident. Armin, Jean and Mikasa would now handle Eren if he lost control. He was determined not to hurt them again. Looking up he saw the flare a few moments later. I MUST control my titan form and test my limits! Eren shouted in his head as he bit down hard on his hand, his eyes on fire with focus. There was an explosion of light in the dark night and the ground around the well shook as if a small earthquake had just hit. A massive bust was sticking out from the crater that had once been the well. From shoulders up was Eren in his titan form. His eyes glowing green in the darkness around him. Armin and Mikasa were about to run up to him but Levi stopped them. "Let Hanji go first" Mikasa gritted her teeth but stayed back until she got the all clear. Jean, on the other hand took a few steps back. He could see the pointed ears and dark hair by his torch light. He had only seen Eren's titan form from a far before and was on nerve. Hanji walked around the long way so she would she would approach Eren's face. Inside the massive titan's neck was the human form of Eren, fused with the flesh around him. His eyelids falling low, almost covering his eyes completely. "Eren! Can you hear me? Do you know who I am?" Hanji was now only five or so feet away from where Eren was sticking out of the ground.

Han…Hanji? Eren could make out her voice, but it seemed so muddled and far away. He lifted his head, eyes fighting their lids to open more. His titan face was unchanged as Hanji approached. There was a slight breeze that caused the dark brown hair to sway slightly as his eyes still glowed green. The feeble light given off by the torch Hanji held up was not enough for here to see Eren's entire bust. "I need more light here" she called out. Levi nodded and turned to Armin and Mikasa "You two can head there now. Follow Hanji's orders… but still keep a safe distance." The two nodded and then walked briskly to where Hanji stood. Jean looked to Levi to see if he should join the rest. As if Levi was able to read his mind, he said "Jean, I want you to stick with me on this side of Eren." Jean moved forward to stand by Levi's side. Armin and Mikasa were now standing at either side of Hanji, their torches held high. With the better light the three of them could see that the titan looked to be breathing. "Eren! Can you hear me? Can you see us?" Hanji called out, waving her torch above her head as she spoke. Inside the titan, Eren poured all his energy into his slight. The titan flesh that covered his upper cheeks throbbed like nerves carrying the images the glowing green eyes could see to Eren's human dull green eyes. On the Titans face the eyes moved slowly to look at all three figures standing before him.

Armin gave a sigh of relive and smiled. He seems much calmer then when I meet up with him during the Annie fight, Armin thought to himself. He's making grate progress. Hanji Called out "Eren can you nod for me?" The words were too muddled for Eren to make out and so he did nothing but keep looking at the three. Well he didn't respond he was still keeping focus with his eyes, it seemed unlikely that he would make any sort of movement that night. Mikasa Walked closer to Eren, her torch held parallel to her face. She moved to Eren's right shoulder and Armin followed her lead, moving to his left. "Wait!" Hanji called out but Mikasa kept her eyes on Eren as she called back to Hanji "Its fine, he won't hurt us this time." Even with Mikasa so close to Eren's ear her words were still muddled in his head. But he knew it was her and Armin that were so close to him. They might even be toughing him but he was too tired to feel anything. In fact, Eren thought to himself, I'm too tired to see how long I can stay a titan at night. With that Eren closed his eyes, the flesh gave the commanding throb to the titan's eye and soon the glowing green eyes closed too. Armin and Mikasa both removed their hands from Eren as the titan started to become too hot to touch. They both darted to the side and Hanji back stepped a few feet as the titan started to give off steam and began to breakdown. Levi broke into a sprint and Jean followed suit. In the moments it took Levi and Jean to get to Eren, Mikasa was already cutting Eren free to keep him from falling into the well. With Armin and Jeans help Mikasa was able to get hold of Eren and carry him in her arms.

Hanji adjusted her glasses, looking at Eren in Mikasa's arms. "Well he didn't last as long as Sawney but I think he'll do better in the nights to follow." Hanji smirked and folded her arms as she made her way to the castle with the rest. "Will you be ok taking the brat down to the basement on your own, Mikasa?" It was Levi who spoke, though he didn't turn his head to face Mikasa as he spoke. "I'll be fine. I've carried him enough times that I know how to move up and down stares with him." "Well then be sure to clean him up before setting him in his bed." With that Levi entered the castle and made his way up to his quarters. "Mikasa! Can I give you a hand with Eren?" Armin was walking along side Mikasa and he looked down at Eren. Mikasa simply nodded as they made their way to the lower level of the castle. Jean sighed. He knew he had no chance with Mikasa but he still couldn't help but feel somewhat jealous at Eren in her arms. Hanji patted Jean on the shoulder and Jean looked over at her. "Well you should be getting some sleep to! I've got to make some notes on tonight's experiment. " With that Hanji and Jean parted ways. Down in the Basement Eren was being laid onto his bed. Armin and Mikasa were heading up to their rooms as Eren opened his bright green eyes for just a moment before falling back asleep.


	3. The next day

**AN: Hey guys! here's the third chapter! Sorry it took a few days, I've been busy with work. but to make it up this chapter is a fare bit longer! Next chapter should be the last one! Please leave a review and let me know what you think so far! if you spot any errors, feel free to PM me. I did a bit of research and have placed the castle's height at 40feet as most midevil castles were 30-40feet**

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"Get up!" Levi was pounding on the door to Eren's room. Eren lifted himself half up on the bed groaning, shifting the weight of his body onto his left hand as he raised his right hand and rubbed his forehead. "I'm up, sir!" Eren shouted in the direction of the door, his eyes were still closed as Eren rolled his head, cracking his neck. "Get cleaned up and come up to breakfast! We've already started so be quick about it." Eren could hear the light footfalls as Levi headed back up to the main floor of the castle. Eren opened his bright green eyes and looked around his room. There was little light as there were no windows in his room, it was in the basement after all. This made it hard to know what time of day or night it was. The only light in the room at the moment was from two candles that were almost burnt out that sat on the bedside tables. Eren lit a few more candles so he would be able to see what he was doing.

Eren placed a basin above three candles to warm up the water for a quick wash. Well waiting for the water to warm up Eren made his way to the closet to take out a clean uniform. He laid the uniform on the bed and turned to his wash station. There was counter where his brush and washcloths were, the basin and a laundry basket was set to the side and there was a mirror on the wall above the counter. Eren dipped a few fingers into the basin to test the water. He nodded and then dipped a washcloth into the water and then rubbed a bar of soap on the cloth and started to wash his face. Eren then splashed his face with the warm water and dried off with a fresh cloth, looking up at the mirror Eren shot back a moment, tense but then relaxed a moment. It was just a trick of the light Eren thought. Eren took a second look. He saw his own reflection, looking into his own eyes they seemed a brighter shade of green then he remembered, but for a moment he thought he saw them glowing. "It's light the lighting in here" Eren said to himself "heck, there were times when people said my eyes looked gray." With that Eren turned back to his bed and got changed and headed up to the dining hall.

Eren entered the dining hall and looked around. Mikasa and Armin were sitting next to each other at the far end of the table. There were the two scouts that he didn't know by name talking with Hanji at the other end notes strewn about, Jean and Levi were not in sight. Eren took the empty seat next to Mikasa and turned to greet here and Armin "Morning Mikasa, Armin." The two turned in kind and offered up their greetings to Eren "How are you feeling today?" Armin asked "Did you sleep well?" Mikasa ask. Eren smiled at his friends as he poured himself some tea, he was glad they were here this time. Hanji might put him through the ringer but it would be bearable as he had the support of his friends. "I'm fine thanks." Eren looked over to Hanji and saw that two empty tea pots lay on their sides next to a third one that Hanji had just picked up to empty into her mug. "She's already been up for hours" Armin commented "I didn't know someone could survive that much caffeine eh" Eren remembered his first night in the castle, when Hanji kept him up all night with her research. How he fought to keep his eyes open well she went on and on, never seeming to tire. "You've seen nothing yet" Eren sighed Armin was about to respond but all he could say was "Eh?" before the two scouts left and Hanji made her way to Eren. Hanji's eyes shone as she looked into Eren's. "Well your looking bright eyed today!" she said in a chipper tone. Mikasa looked away at that comment.

Eren tried not to grimaced and ended up giving a nervous smile. "Don't worry, I've only a few experiments with you today. I'm going to be heading back to the inner wall this evening to see how things are going with getting Annie out. And there's also background information to look over with the other's under observation." Hanji nodded as she went to gather up her notes that were strewn across the table. "Levi wants all of you to get some training in today as well. It would be best if you started with him, as it'll take up less energy than becoming a titan." Hanji looked from her notes to Eren "I doubt Levi would cut you any slack if you were about to pass out during his training so it's best to have the high energy stuff for latter." Eren nodded and smiled. He was glad to get some normal training in, he was starting to wonder if it would be expected of him to sight solely as a titan once he got controlling it down. He didn't like that idea one bit. Eren thought that maybe others would have him do so but knew that Levi wouldn't allow Eren to do so, even if he wanted. Eren quickly finished up his breakfast and headed out to the back fields of the castle with Armin and Mikasa, where Hanji said Levi and Jean where.

Jean and Levi already had their 3D maneuver gear on, Levi without the sword boxes and extra straps to take the pressure off his injuries. They were leaning against a thick tree trunk and turned their heads to see the three of them approaching. Levi gave them a cold hard stare that Mikasa sent right back. "It's about time you were finished up" Levi said to Eren. "I don't care how tired you get from transforming, you will wake up with the rest of the soldiers!" Eren looked to Levi, Hanji was right it would be best to work with him in the morning when I had the most energy. "I'm sorry, sir. It gets hard to tell time without any natural light to know when morning is" Eren risked being frank with Captain Levi. Levi turned to look at the trees as he spoke "well maybe if you work hard enough, the next time you're here you might get a room with a window." Eren grinned wide at that comment, I knew that the captain saw I was getting better Eren thought to himself. "Now you three get your gear on! It's time to run some drills!" Levi pulled the trigger for the 3DMG and shot up into the trees. Levi was standing on a tall branch and called down to the four new recruits "once you've all geared up, you will try to find me and tag me! I want you all to work as a team." Levi looked over Jean as he said the last part before disappearing into the thick. Eren, Armin and Mikasa quickly donned their gear and stood by Jean, who was waiting for them. Jean nodded to the three once they were in formation. Eren looked at Jean and thought about how much he's changed since they first met. Eren realized that he wasn't the only one who was undergoing changes and nodded to Jean. "You take the lead" Eren said to Jean. Jean looked to Eren with a slight look of confusion on his face. "The Captain wants us to work as a team, right? Mikasa is way faster than the rest of us so if she leads, we would fall behind so I think it's best if one of us took the lead." Jean asked "Why not you or Armin then?" Armin looked to Jean as he spoke "Well my speed isn't quite up to your guy's pace, I could slow us down. Plus you've lead before" Armin knew what Eren wanted to do. Eren wanted to have trust with Jean so Eren would trust Jean to lead them and Jean would trust them to follow. Jean looked to the three and then grinned and nodded. "Ok then, keep your eyes and ears open. We're more likely to hear the Captain before seeing him." With that Jean pulled the trigger to his 3DMG and the rest followed.

It was just past lunch when the four had managed to catch the Captain and tag him "and I'm injured too! How could it take you all so long when I wasn't even moving at my full speed?" Levi was berating them on how long it took and how many time he had to tell them not to simply rely on Mikasa. The five of them were sitting at a picnic table in the castle's back field. Mikasa was pouring another helping of the stew into Eren's bowl. Looking into his eyes with a slightly worried look on her face, she told him that he needed to eat as much as he could as Hanji had him next. Eren grinned and waved his hands "Don't worry Mikasa, I can manage it." Hanji had just come out to join them for lunch, a bundle of papers under each arm. She dropped the heavy loads onto the table and then helped herself to the stew. Scooping the piping hot stew as quick as she could, she looked over her notes with her free hand and then looked to Eren and smiled. Gulping the last of her lunch Hanji asked to the table at large "so, how was training?" Levi spoke "They've got a long was if their to be a part of my squad" Levi looked to Mikasa from the coroner of his eye "All of them." The four nodded to their Captain, Armin and Jean with stoic faces, Mikasa with no emotion on her face and Eren Grinning like a fool. Hanji pushed her bowl forward and rested her elbows on the table, looking at Eren. "Well it's good to see your still bright eyed. We'll be continuing in the well today." Eren nodded to Hanji and looked to the others. Mikasa seemed somewhat put off by Hanji but he figured that she was just worried about him, as always. Levi stood up "Armin, Jean, Mikasa! You will continue to train with me well Eren is with Hanji." The three looked to Levi and nodded. "Are you sure we shouldn't be with Hanji and Eren?" Jean asked. "If Hanji needs assistance she can call for us. I don't want the rest of you to just slack off and watch Eren, not when there's cleaning and sparring to be done." Eren nodded to his friends "I'll see you guys latter."

Hanji and Eren had moved to a large table by the crater that was once a well. There was a tent over the table and there were more of Hanji's notes all over it. Hanji gestured for Eren to take a seat and he obliged. "Now before we begin today I want to talk with you about last night" Hanji was already righting as she spoke to Eren. "How much of last night do you remember?" Hanji taped her pen on the paper, ready to take down every word. Thinking hard for a moment, Eren closed his eyes and pressed his memories "Well it's hard to recall… I was so tired that I couldn't hear anything clearly or feel anything really, all I could do was look out." Hanji was still looking at Eren as she took down her notes. Eren wondered how long it took for her to get so good at righting neatly without even looking at her paper. "So when Armin and Mikasa were touching you, you couldn't feel them?" Eren nodded as Hanji continued "So were you able to see us clearly by the torch light?" Eren nodded again "yes, I was able to see everything just fine. Actually I'm surprised how well I was able to see, for how tired I was." Hanji nodded to herself as she put that last bit to paper. "Did you know that your titan eyes glow? I've never seen that with normal titan! They don't glow all the time, though just in the dark." Eren wasn't sure what to think about that. What else could human titans do that the normal ones couldn't he wondered. Hanji took off her glasses and picked up a different pare that that three straps on the back that made them look more like goggles. "Well I guess there's not much else to say for now" Hanji strapped on the field glasses "Let's get to work then!"

"We're still going to start you off in the well, just to air on the side of caution" Hanji said as Eren was lowered to the bottom of the crater. Eren looked up to where Hanji was pulling up the rope ladder "After you've transformed I'll call out your moves. I'll just have you move around a bit to see how you respond in the day light." Eren shouted up an OK to Hanji "do you have a clear goal in mind?" Hanji asked. "I'll try the same goal as last night, might as well see of the same goal can work." Hanji grinned "Now you're thinking scientifically!" With that Hanji fell back to a safe distance and loaded her flair gun. Hanji fired the shot and Eren thought to himself once again I MUST control my titan form and test my limits! As he bit down on his hand with fierce determination. There was a burst of light and the ground shook, though not as much as the last time. There was Eren in his titan form, shooting out from the ground shoulders and above visible. In the nape of the neck the human form of Eren was almost fully covered and connected to the titan flesh around him. Hanji calmly walked up to the titan and smiled "Eren! I take it the same goal worked then" There was no response from the titan. "Err… I guess we're still a long way from seeing if you can talk as a titan. For now, if you can just nod" Inside the titan, Eren was able to make out Hanji's voice much better but it still seemed far away. The titan made a small bow of the head in comprehension that caused Hanji to grin wildly. "Ok Eren, now that we know you're in control I want you to try and lift yourself out of there." After a moment of waiting Hanji tilted her head to one side. "Humm, well you haven't tried to eat or harm me yet so I'm sure your still in control…AH!" Hanji's head snapped back up as she snapped a finger. "I bet it's still hard to make out what I'm saying" Hanji got closer to Eren and spoke slow and loud "Eren! Can you lift yourself out now?" Inside the titan Eren was better able to make out Hanji's words. The massive head nodded and the shoulders moved. Hanji backed up as the ground moved too. The ground nearest the titan was breaking apart and soon the arms were lifted from the hole.

Once Eren's arms were free he lifted himself up. Slowly at first but soon his feet were able to dig into the ground and after a few more moments the 15 meter titan was standing free on the grass. Eren looked around. He was standing about 3 meters taller than the castle and could see the back fields were Armin and Jean were sparring with Mikasa at the same time well Levi was leaning on a nearby tree. Eren thought he saw Mikasa looking at him but she was too far away to be sure. Hanji was shouting up at Eren but it seemed he couldn't hear a word she was saying. "Sorry about this!" Hanji call out, knowing full well that Eren couldn't hear her. Hanji pulled the trigger on her own 3DMG and swung up to Eren's shoulder. Eren though he felt something and turned to look around him. Not fighting, not moving a boulder, not doing anything as a titan was weird to him. Hanji stood on Eren's right shoulder and held on to a tuft of his hair. "Eren!" She called out into his ear. Eren looked to his shoulder out of the corner of his eyes, not wanting to turn his head he saw Hanji standing there. "Eren, can you put a hand out to your shoulder?" Hanji had once again spoken slowly and as clearly as she could. Standing free like this, with Hanji right at his ear it was much easier for Eren to make her out. Eren lifted his left arm and held his hand out flat to his right shoulder. Hanji let go of Eren's hair and jumped from his shoulder to the open hand. "If you can still hear me nod!" Eren nodded. With only Hanji to focus on her voice came through better than the last night. In her excitement Hanji starting rambling on right there in Eren's hand. She was talking to fast and saying too much for Eren to make anything out. Eren looked around some more as Hanji prattled on, he could see so far!

"Eren!" Hanji called out after a few minutes and stamped her foot. Eren turned his attention back to Hanji. "Well I guess it's still hard to follow along if the conversation gets to complicated" Hanji placed a hand on her chin as she spoke. "Ok Eren, I want you to kneel down now." Hanji pointed down to make sure that Eren knew what she meant. Eren nodded and lowered to one knee, Hanji fell back from the sudden movement, throwing her hands out behind her to stop her from falling on her back. Eren lowered his left hand to the ground and Hanji jumped off. Levi, Armin, Mikasa and Jean were heading to where Eren and Hanji were now that they were done sparring. Hanji waved enthusiastically and Eren turned his head to see the four of them approaching. "Eren! Can you hear us?" Mikasa called out as she got close to him. Eren nodded some of the long hair falling into his eyes and Mikasa gave a rare smile. "Ok! Now that were all here I want to try one last thing for today" Hanji said and looked up to Eren. "If it's ok, I want to test your sense of touch. If we do anything that hurts you, just shake your head, ok?" Hanji wanted for Eren to respond before doing anything. The last thing she wanted was for him to go nuts when he was free and un-restrained. Levi spoke next "Mikasa, you're tasked with cutting Eren out if Hanji does anything stupid to make Eren go nuts." Levi knew Hanji all too well. Levi then walked to the table with all of Hanji's notes and took a seat, looking over the papers and tidying them. There was to much talking for Eren to make out what was said after Hanji spoke so he looked to Hanji and nodded at what she had said.

It was too odd. There were four people swinging off his titan body and making shallow cuts there and there little of that was carried to his human body. Every now and then Eren though he could feel the prick of a cable piercing his titan form but it wasn't anything more than a pinprick to him. He was sure he felt pain before, when fighting Annie both times but then he did lose limbs. As those advancing on him now were his friends, they didn't even cause nearly as much harm than when Levi beat him during the trial. Armin and Mikasa only used their blades when Levi shouted at them to. Jean was more willing to make a few cuts and Hanji was swinging away though nothing deep enough to cause a limb or chuck of flesh to fall off. After a while they all stopped, as there was steam coming off Eren's body all over the place from the shallow but many cuts. Once Eren's titan body was all healed Hanji stood in front of Eren's face. "I'll have to leave in a few hours so let's call it a day" Hanji waited for Eren to nod, showing that he understood. "Time to come out of the titan" Hanji said after Eren just looked at her. Eren nodded at that and soon everyone backed up as steam was coming off of every part of the titan.

Mikasa was about to head up to the nape of the neck to help Eren out but Levi stopped her. "Let's see how far he can pull himself out" Before the events with Annie, Mikasa might have been more incline to disobey Levi but he did help her get Eren from Annie, and she felt responsible for Levi's injuries so she stood back. The titan flesh around Eren was melting away and he could be spotted now. Eren struggled to free himself but he was unable to get himself free. Levi nodded and it was Jean that shot first to help Eren out. Using his blades Jean cut Eren free and then brought him down to where everyone was standing. Eren opened his eyes slightly to look around. His hair was blocking some of his vision but he could make out their voices. "Remarkable!" Hanji had shouted as she pulled some of the hair back. "Look at his…" Eren's eyes closed and the world faded away before Eren could hear what Hanji was saying.


	4. The Aftereffects

**AN: Sorry it took me so long to finish this chapter, it was the hardest one yet but I hope you enjoy it that much more! This chapter is a bit shorter then the last but that's because there is one more left! I know last time I said this would likely be the last one but I just had to much to fit into one chapter so the next one will be the final chapter, for real. As always, if you come across a spelling or grammatical error please let me know! Reviews are vary appreciated! let me know what you think!**

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The sky was orange. Eren had opened his eyes and saw that the orange sky, it was evening. Eren was lying on the grass looking up when he came too. He sat up and looked around, he was in the castles front field near Hanji's research tent. Mikasa was sitting at the table, watching Eren. She got up when she saw that Eren was awake and walked round to table to him. Eren brushed the hair out of his face to see her better, he noticed that his hair felt limp and greasy and was longer than it should have been. He thought to himself that the Captain must have said to not let me into the castle until I could clean myself off. Eren moved his hands to brush his hair behind his ears and that's when his eyes went wide as he felt his ears. They were pointed. Eren looked to Mikasa, his bright green eyes shaking for confirmation and Mikasa frowned. Mikasa was standing next to Eren, she was holding a mirror as she looked to Eren "here" was all she said as she handed it to Eren. Eren reached out for the mirror and took it, not sure what to expect. He lifted the mirror to his face and looked into his reflection, there he was. His hair was now down to his chin, his eyes were the same bright green that he saw that morning and his ears were pointed, though not much longer than they normally were everything else seemed normal.

Eren looked up to Mikasa and just stared at her, not sure what to say or do. Mikasa looked to Eren, biting her lower lip "It seems that your retaining some physical traits of your titan. Hanji isn't sure if it will fade away as an aftereffect or if it's permanent…" Eren just continued to stare at Mikasa in a state of shock "Tell me Mikasa… What do I look like as a titan? All I know is that its 15 meters." Mikasa held out her arm to help Eren up and he took her hand, dropping the mirror on the ground. They sat at the table with Hanji's notes that were cleaned up by Levi and Mikasa handed Eren two pieces of paper. There were drawing on them made by Hanji, the first was a sketch of the full body of the titan with notes around it and the second was a close up of his titan's face. Looking at the sketch of the face, Eren could see the long pointed ears, nose and chin. He saw the wide mouth with countless teeth and no lips, the narrow bright green eyes and long dark brown hair. Eren then looked over the first sketch and saw the muscular build of the titan. He thought that the build of the titan reminded him of Mikasa, remembering that he once told her that she had a body built for killing titans. Hanji had noted that like normal titans, he had skin but looks to be much stronger than a normal titan. Hanji had written questions to herself on the paper. If Eren could harden his skin like the armored titan could he take it down in a fight or could he do that without armor of his own? Judging by how Annie, in her titan could sever limbs with a kick it would be safe to assume that despite his physical strength he is still as abnormally light as a normal titan. Eren looked away from the notes and started up at the sky as it was turning dark. I really know nothing about my titan form, Eren thought to himself as he looked back at the sketches. It looks less human then a normal titan does he thought to himself, I'm more of a monster then even a titan is.

"Let's head in for dinner" Mikasa said to Eren, standing up and taking the pages from under Eren's hand. Eren looked up at Mikasa "you go ahead, I need a moment..." Mikasa frowned at Eren "are you sure you'll be alright on your own" Mikasa asked to Eren. Eren was quiet for a moment before answering "no, but I need to be. I'll come in when I'm ready, I swear." Mikasa nodded and left Eren to his thoughts. Eren watched Mikasa fade into the distance as she made her way to the castle, Eren focused his eyes on Mikasa and suddenly he could see her clearly again. Eren shut his eyes tight and turned his head down, he opened his eyes again and saw where the mirror had fallen. He got up and marched over to it and picked the mirror up, looking into his reflection. Glowing green eyes stared back at him in the mirror "NO!" Eren shouted to himself, throwing the mirror down. The mirror bounced off the grass and lanced with its reflective side facing up near Eren as he collapsed to his knees, hands over the sides of his head, he could feel the pointed ears against his hands. "This is not who I am, I am human, I am Human!" Eren clenched his hands over his ears, trying to force them to take on their normal shape as he shut his eyes again, willing them to stop glowing and return to their normal shade of green. After a few moments Eren felt his ears get hot and let go of them, dropping his arms to the ground his right hand brushing against the mirror. Eren picked up the mirror again and opened his eyes, not sure what he would see this time he looked into his reflection. It was harder to make out as everything seemed darker, like it should be for this time of night. Eren could make out steam coming off of his ears, as they receded back to a normal shape, his eyes were no longer glowing as well. His hair was still down to his chin but he could deal with that, he was just glad that he was returning to normal again. Eren stood up and looked around for a moment, everything was dark and that was fine by him, as he made his way into the castle.

"How did he take it?" Armin asked Mikasa as soon as she entered the dining hall. Mikasa looked over to where Armin and Jean were sitting and frowned as she took a seat. "That bad eh?" Jean said as he watched Mikasa sit down "well I can't say I would take it any better" Jean continued as he turned from Mikasa to Armin. "Well he was just getting used to the fact that he can turn into a titan, that was enough to deal with considering his hatred of them" Armin told Jean. The three looked down at the wooded table and no one spoke for a while. "I… I'm sure it will fade away…" Mikasa said, her head still turned down. "Ya… Yah!" Armin's head shot up and the others turned to look at him. "I mean he's transformed quite a few times already and aside from re-growing a tooth there have never been any after effects like this. It's probably just part of learning to control his powers" Armin continued, looking from Jean to Mikasa, his eyes bright with realization. "Come to think of it, the titan traits that he's retaining are all part of what he's been working on." Jean tilted his head to one side "what do you mean, Armin?" Armin nodded his head to Jean "well his eyes have been brighter all day and last night all he was able to do was look at us" Mikasa nodded her head in comprehension "and today he was able to understand some of what we were saying!" "Well when you put it that way it makes sense" Jean told Armin, smiling slightly. "I bet once he lets go of what he's been working on the after effects will fade away!" Armin was standing now, propelled by his thoughts as he looked up and saw that Eren was coming in. Armin sat back down, smiling that he now knew how to help his friend. Eren's hair was covering his ears so the three couldn't see that they were back to normal, they were able to see Eren's dull green eyes however. "Over here, Jaeger" Jean called to Eren as he waved a hand for Eren to take the empty seat next to him. Eren smiled at the offer and made his way to sit next to Jean, glad to be making progress in their friendship. Once Eren was seated Armin handed him a plate of food, smiling to Eren and they all ate their dinner in relative silence.

Captain Levi entered the hall shortly after the four had started their dinner and sat at the far end of the table from them, pouring himself a cup of tea. "So figure out what to do with yourself yet?" Levi was looking at Eren over his cup, his eyes as cold as always. Armin turned to look at Levi "actually sir, I might have figured something out…" Eren turn to look at Armin and was about to speak up before Captain Levi continued. "Well that's expected of you, but I was asking Eren." Armin quickly closed his mouth and looked away from the table, Mikasa tapping her finger on the table out of annoyance for how her friends were being addressed. Eren grinned at the Captain and pulled his hair back, showing that his ears were back to normal, Mikasa and Jean had a shocked look in their eyes and Armin turned to look at Eren, smiling now. "Well you still need to clean that mess of hair! I want it back to a respectable length and clean when you come up for training tomorrow morning, on time for once." With that Captain Levi took one last swig from his cup and took it off to the wash station before heading up to his quarters. Once Levi was out of site Armin stood up and walked over to Eren "so you figured out what you had to do then?!" Eren grinned to Armin "Well kind of… but I would still like to hear what your thoughts on the matter were" Mikasa had also made her way to Eren's side of the table and sat next to him as Armin re-told this theory to Eren. "I guess that's what I did… though I panicked and forced myself to fully return to human, rather than letting go of my titan abilities" Eren said in a thoughtful tone. "That crazy woman wanted us to continue with your night time tests but I think it's best if we all just turn in" Jean grinned looking to Eren. "Hanji won't be back until sometime around noon tomorrow so it's training with the Captain all morning again" Jean went on. Mikasa stood up first "Eren, I'll cut your hair for you so let's head down" with that Armin waved to Eren and Mikasa as he made his way up with Jean, telling Eren that he would come down early to wake him up.

Mikasa and Eren were in an empty room where they placed a sheet on the floor and a chair over the sheet for Eren to sit in. Mikasa was trimming Eren's hair but was still keeping quiet as she did so. Eren looked around the room, not moving his head for Mikasa's sake. They had lit a number of candles so Mikasa could see what she was doing well but aside from them there was nothing else. Eren was lost in thought as he heard the sips and felt Mikasa's hand brush over his head. "Mikasa…" Eren said in a quiet tone "Hum?" Mikasa responded as she kept cutting away. "What do you think would happen if the after effects were permanent? And if there were more of them?" Mikasa stopped cutting, her arms falling to her sides as she thought about how to respond "I'm not sure… I guess those afraid of you would only become more so." Eren clenched his fist as he asked the next question "and what about those not already afraid of me?" Eren was sure Mikasa knew who he meant. Mikasa sighed deeply as she walked around to face Eren, kneeling so their eyes would meet "Eren, you know there is nothing that would make me afraid of you." Eren's eyes were quivering with fright as he thought about all that could happen "What about Armin, Jean, Captain Levi and the rest of the 104th?!" Eren was overcome with emotions in a way he had never been before, he had been overcome with rage, anger and drive but never with a fear like this. Mikasa took Eren's hands in hers and looked him straight in the eyes "you know Armin would never abandon you, he might be scared at first but never of you, he'd be scared for you. As far as Jean and the others go, they would deal with it in their own ways, like how they dealt when they first found out about your titan abilities and as far as that midget goes…" Mikasa was still conflicted on how she felt about the Captain "he would deal with you in whatever way he deals with things." Eren's breathing hitched as Mikasa spoke, still feeling scared of all that could go wrong. Mikasa stood back up, resting Eren's hands on his lap as she continued to finish cutting his hair. Eren remained quiet as she finished.

Mikasa helped Eren move the candles to light to his room and then Mikasa turned to leave for her room, she stopped in the doorway, still facing out she spoke "Eren… Even if you were stuck as a titan, with or without conscious hold, I would remain by your side and see to it that no harm would befall you." Eren looked up at the silhouette of Mikasa in the doorframe as she left for the upper levels of the castle where her room was. Eren left the door to his room open as he sat on his bed lost in thought _and then fell back onto it_. A few candles had burnt out on their own by the time Eren got up and changed for bed. Eren was standing in front of his wash station, looking into the mirror on the wall, he looked over every aspect of himself that he could see. Steam was rising from the basin as the candles under it burned bright, letting the water rise in temperature. The mirror was beginning to get foggy causing Eren to look down at the water, watching the steam come off of it. Eren bent down to blow the candles out from under the basin and then Eren dipped the tips of his fingers into the water. The water was hot but it didn't bother Eren as much as it should have, causing Eren to look back at his reflection in the mirror. The mirror was covered in so much fog that Eren couldn't make out anything in its surface. Eren raised a hand to wipe away the fog and see himself. Eren saw his hand's reflection in the mirror as it moved along the smooth surface, it looked darker and the skin seemed so thin that Eren could see all the veins underneath. Scared, Eren quickly pulled his hand back and looked at it, it looked normal. When Eren placed his hand against the mirror again he could see the hands reflection as it was before. Wiping away all the fog, Eren saw his reflection, his long pointed chin and ears, the pointed nose, long hair, glowing green eyes and wide mouth full of teeth. Eren's eyes went wide with shock, unable to move for a moment he just stood there looking into the mirror.

Eren shakily lifted a hand to his head touching his cheek he could feel the soft skin against his fingers, in the mirror the hand was touching the back row of teeth. Eren moved his hand to feel his ear, it was still rounded at the top as a normal ear should be but the reflection's hand was at the tip of the long pointed ear. Pulling on the freshly cut hair, Eren could feel that it ended halfway past his ears at the front whereas the reflection pulled on the hair ending at its chin. "Th…This isn't me!" Eren said with a quiver in his voice, looking into the glowing green eye. "You're not me!" Eren shouted at the warped reflection. The reflection growled and lowered its head, causing Eren to take an apprehensive step back. The reflection pulled its right arm back and then thrust it forward, shattering the glass that stood between it and Eren. The large hand wrapped around Eren's body as he tried to run away. Eren was lifted off the ground as the titan stood tall, towering over all around it. Eren thrashed about trying to free himself from the grasp the titan had on him, trying to scream but finding his voice was gone. Looking down, Eren could see his home town of Shiganshina with all the people he had come to know over the past fifteen years looking up in horror at the titan. He could hear the cries of monster and calls for soldiers to kill it as he tried to call for someone to save him, still finding no sound coming out of his mouth, only steam. Finally he was able to scream, he let out a terrible roar that caused all to fall silent. Looking down again he could see Sasha, Conny, Reiner, Christa, Bertholdt, Ymir and Jean jumping from rooftop to rooftop, blades drawn lead by Captain Levi coming in to attack him. No! You have to save me! Cut me out of its hand! Eren was screaming but the only sound that escaped his wide mouth was another roar and more steam. Trying to move, Eren raised his right arm and could see something in his hand. Raising his hand to his face he saw a woman was held in his massive hand, his mother. "We have to take it down before he eats her!" Levi shouted to the new members of the scouting legion "It's already eaten two of our own, we can't let it eat one more person!" What?! I haven't eaten anyone! With his free left hand he felt around his wide mouth, finding something stuck between two teeth. With his thumb and index figure he pulled the object free. It was a red scarf.

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**AN: And here's my first true cliffhanger! For the record the Hulk has always been my favorite superhero so yes, I did draw inspiration from him in the last two paragraphs. **


	5. The Last Day

**AN: Well here we are! the final chapter and its a long one! Sorry it took me so much longer to get this one out, I was trying my best to re-work the pacing so it would move the day along but not seem rushed. I hope you find it well paced! Just a fair warning: I have dialog lifted right from chapter 42 so if your not caught up to that point yet, you may want to get caught up. See you at the end notes. Please leave a review if you liked it!  
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"No… No, no, no, no, NO!" Eren screamed out as he shot up from the bed. Eren was gasping for breath, his left arm clutching his chest as his hear raced at a dangerously high rate, his right hand down on the bed supporting his weight. He had fallen asleep some time ago, still in is uniform. After many deep breaths Eren let go of his chest, his hear slowing down a bit. "It was just a dream, it was just a dream" Eren was rocking a bit as he told himself this over and over. Looking around his room Eren could see that many of the candles had burnt out but there were still enough lit that he could see around the room. His eyes fell upon the wash station and its mirror. Eren was too far from it to see his reflection, and he wasn't sure that he wanted to look but knew he had to. Standing up on shaking feet, Eren slowly made his way to the mirror, terrified of what he might see. Swallowing hard, Eren stepped into range of the mirror and looked into its reflective surface. There he was as he should be; short hair, round ears, his lips pressed shut and the nostrils on his rounded nose twitching as he breathed. Eren breathed out deeply in a sigh of relief as his dull green eyes surveyed his reflection the true image of him looking back. Eren looked back at his bed, the sheets a mess, he was thrashing about in his sleep. Deciding that he was unlikely to fall back asleep any time soon Eren put his boots on and made his way up to the castles main floor. Eren took a torch off the wall of the lower level to guide his way up the steps, keeping his footfalls as light as he could. Once on the main floor Eren made his way to the door that would lead to the back fields. He pushed the heavy wooden door open and saw the darken field lit by the moonlight as he walked out of the castle. Walking for a bit, Eren found a fire pit next to a bench and sat down after tossing a few branches into the pit with the torch. The moon was still up high on its course threw the sky, it must have been about one in the morning.

After watching the sky for a while, Eren turn to watch the fire as it crackled and burnt. It was just a dream Eren thought to himself again, but what if it became a reality Eren continued his train of thought. I lost control once before and hurt Mikasa… "Even if you were stuck as a titan, with or without conscious hold, I would remain by your side" Eren remembered Mikasa's word from before he fell into the nightmare "…and see to it that no harm would befall you." Eren gave a nervous laugh as he started talking out loud to himself "How could she do that if I was trying to kill her?" Eren turned his head to look at the sky again "I don't want to become a titan ever again… but what's that matter, I will be told to and forced to eventually. I don't even have any control over my life anymore." Eren remained quiet for some time, just staring up at the stars before turning to look at the fire again. I could run away, Eren thought to himself but where could I run to? Back to Shiganshina, the basement? Eren shook his head and spoke out loud again "I would need to become a titan to pull that off on my own, and there's no guarantee I could get there by myself" "you couldn't." Eren turned to see Mikasa and Armin standing behind him in their night cloths, Mikasa with her red scarf on. Mikasa continued as the two sat on the bench next to Eren "rather to say, I wouldn't let you go off on your own." Eren looked into Mikasa's face as she spoke, his eyes once again falling on to the scar he gave her "but it's not safe to be around me anymore." Armin gave a little laugh and then spoke up "Eren, it's never been safe to be around you, when you were young you would always pick fight and now you're always rushing off into battle." Eren fought with himself not to shout out his next words "that's nothing compared to the damage I could do as a titan and you know it!" Why couldn't they see the risk of staying with him, Eren thought to himself. "But you've gotten so much better at controlling it now! During the last fight with Annie I was in your hand as we made our way to the wall" Armin was speaking with a fierce determination, desperate to make his friend see past his fears. "And after Mikasa cut Annie off the wall, you held her down and helped us get her out" Eren couldn't remember much of what happened during the fight so most of this was new to him. The three sat silent for a while as the fire burnt on.

"I'm just scared of what could happen. This has all been so much to take in these past few weeks." Eren's voice softened as he looked to the ground as he spoke. "I've become the thing I hate most, I'm more of a monster then even the titans are… can I even call myself human anymore?" Mikasa and Armin both placed a hand on Eren's shoulder and Armin spoke first "of course your human, to even ask that question proves it." "You have the heartbeat of a human too" Mikasa added. "But that can change, can't it? One day I could lose control again and hurt you both, badly" Eren's fist clenched, his eyes still turned downwards. "You've lost control once before and we were able to get you back" Armin reminded Eren. "Yah but that was luck. What if your words couldn't reach me and I end up killing the two of you? It would be best if I never become a titan again or just left here." Mikasa stood and pulled Eren up by his shoulders, causing him to look up at her in shock "would you really be that selfish?" Eren was as confused at her words as he was shocked at her actions. "You would just abandon your friends and family over a fear?! You know we would never abandon you so the least you can do is the same for us!" Eren tried to say something but couldn't find any words, he had never seen Mikasa so angry with him. Looking over Mikasa's shoulder he could see Jean walking up to the three of them. "Your humanities greatest hope, remember?" Armin stood and turned to see Jean walk up to them "Sorry, I could hear you guys from my window" Jean told them with a slight smirk on his face. "If you guys are going to beat some sense into Jaeger, I want in." Mikasa turned her head to look at Jean, her eyes turning to steal but Jean just waved it off. "Jaeger, we're all scared of your trick but we're also relying on it" Jean sat down at the far end of the bench and faced Eren and Mikasa. "And well not ALL of us would do so happily, we would all lay our lives down for you so the least you can do is get a grip."

Some of the tension left Eren's body with Jean's words. Jean was right, Eren thought to himself. There's so much riding on me, I need to be stronger for everyone's sake, not just my own. "I'm sorry" Eren said to all three of them "I let my fears and nightmares get the better of me." Mikasa let go of Eren and sat down next to Armin, Eren sitting between Jean and Armin the four of them watched as the fire pit began to burn itself out. When the last of the glowing embers floated up and faded out Armin stood first. "We should all get back to bed, before the Captain finds us missing" the other three nodded and they all turned to discover that it was too late for that. Captain Levi stood behind them, arms crossed over his chest. "Well I'm glad to see you all had a nice heart to heart but it's well past lights out." The four teen stood in stunned silence Eren giving a quick salute as he feared another beating from the Captain. "As it seems you all still have energy to spare, this late at night I want you to run five laps around the castle, ten for you Eren, as you have your boots on. Now." The four quickly started their run as Levi sat down on the bench, tossing some more wood into the pit and lighting it so he could see when they finished a lap. Eren had two more laps to go when Armin finished and he was already exhausted, Levi has sent the others in to wash up and return to bed when they finished, not allowing them to wait up for him. He passed Captain Levi who held up a finger to show what was left. Once out of shot of the Captain, Eren slowed down to catch his breath and started a light jog to pace himself. Eren reflected on his talk with Mikasa, Armin and Jean and his fears as he jogged along. The nightmare has scared him unlike anything else and well it started to fade, parts were etched into his mind. There was still so much unknown to Eren about his powers but that gave him new resolve "My goal the past few time were to become the master of this power and test its limits. I just need to always keep that in mind, be the master of this power." Eren sped up as he turned the last corner of the castle and saw the Captain come into slight.

Eren stopped running once he past Captain Levi and buckled over, placing his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. Levi stood from the bench and walked past Eren to make his way back into the castle "Wash up and get back to bed." Levi barked at Eren "and tomorrow when Hanji asks you to transform, you will and when I give you a command in your titan form, I expect you to follow it." With that Captain Levi entered the castle leaving Eren on his own in the field. Once Eren caught his breath he stood back up and took one last look around, the moon was far lower than when he first came out indicating that at least three hours had passed. Eren made his way into the castle and down to the basement, taking another torch of the wall to guide his way down. Once in his room Eren got changed for bed and flattened his sheets that were still a mess from the nightmare. Eren fought with his sleepiness at first, unsure of what might face him in his unconscious mind but eventually gave in and fell back asleep, too tired from running. Eren awoke several hours later to a rapping at his door, groaning Eren got out of bed to answer the door. Armin had come down to wake him up, just as he has promised the night before. Eren smiled to Armin, thanking him for the wakeup call and told Armin that he would be up shorty. Lighting the candles around his room, Eren started to wash up and get dressed for the day, reflecting on the events of the last night. Eren tried to recall if he had another dream but it seemed the last few hours had nothing to show. Content to find he had a dreamless sleep, Eren finished dressing and made his way up.

They day was passing pleasantly enough. The five members of the scouting legion shared a quiet breakfast, the teens a bit more wary from their lack of sleep. Captain Levi was instructing them on what training they would be going through, after spending a few hours cleaning various rooms of the castle for being out past curfew. They would each spend two hours cleaning a floor on their own and for every minute late for training they would run a lap. Not surprizing Eren got the basement to clean, guessing that the Captain wanted him to be late. After cleaning a number of rooms in the lower level of the castle Eren went up to check the time and saw Jean coming down to get him "It's nearly time so let's get going." The two meet up with Armin and Mikasa and made their way to the back fields where Levi would be waiting for them. "Get geared up! You all have ten minutes to get ready, full gear too" the Captain barked out at the teens. Once they had donned their 3DMG and sword box's they returned to the Captain and gave a salute "today we'll start with some accuracy." Levi pointed up to the trees behind him "In the lower canopy there are four branches with red X's painted on them. You will each cut one branch down the center of the X and bring me the cut branch, you must retrieve it before it falls to the ground or I will count it as a fail." The four nodded to their Captain and then he called the first name "Armin, ladies first." Armin took the insult and ran to the trees and pulled the trigger for the 3DMG, Eren however though it was more likely to be an insult to Mikasa. After a while Armin returned with a branch, a clean cut down the X though a bit far to the left. Levi scolded him a moment and then sent Jean up.

Jeans cut was better than Armin's but it was still off a bit, to the right this time. Mikasa was next and it took her half of Armin's time to return with a branch cut clean down the middle of the X. Levi scoffed and told her she could have been faster, trying to get a rise out of Mikasa but getting nothing from his comment. Finally it was Eren's turn, Eren shot into the trees the moment his name was called by the Captain. Searching the canopy for his target, Eren turned his head back and forth to scan the many branches. Eren past two that had been cut already as he moved further in, still looking around for any hint of red. A bird cawing caused him to look up and that's where he saw his mark, right past a magpies nest. "Great" Eren sighed out, he HAD to be precise with his cut or he would risk knocking the nest over, causing the bird to peck at him. Eren shot a hook into a branch a few feet above his mark and positioned his blade to cut the center of the mark. The four on the ground could hear a fair deal of cawing all the sudden as Eren emerged from the trees, a branch in one arm and shooing a bird away with the other. Eren handed the branch to Captain Levi who inspected it "tisk, tisk Eren, you cut a bit too far to the right." Eren said nothing he knew the Captain was trying to get a rise out of him too, Eren wondered if the Captain was picking on them all so much more than usual was because of his injuries. Levi then tossed all four branches into a nearby fire pit and walked over to a clearing, motioning for the teens to follow him.

The next few hours were spent by Levi having the teens spar amongst each other. Eventually they were allowed to break for lunch, heading into the dining hall today after refilling their gas tanks, except for ever who removed his gear as ordered. Hanji and her men were already in the dining hall when they arrived, Hanji turned her head up when she saw them enter. "Eren! Over here!" She waived for him to sit next to her well patting the empty seat next to her. Sighing inwardly to himself, Eren sat next to Hanji. She looked over every aspect of Eren's face as he sat down, frowning once she saw that he was back to normal. Eren took his lunch that Hanji passed to him, nodding as she went on about her research on Annie with little progress. "I've also come across something interesting about some others in your training corps, but we'll discuss that matter latter." This caught Eren's attention but she was already moving on to other topics, he would have to wait until later that night to hear what she found. After lunch Hanji called for the teens to come with her so she could fill her notes. She handed Levi a stack of papers for him to look over, Eren guessed that was the report on the others. The five made their way out to Hanji's research tent in the front field and Mikasa, Armin and Jean sat on the ground well Hanji has Eren take the chair next to her. Hanji then asked Eren and the others endless questions about how Eren looked and reacted after the transformation. After an hour of questions she finally stood up and geared up then told the others to follow her. "OK Eren, walk out a few more feet and you'll transform above ground today" Hanji told him. Eren nodded and walked out till Hanji said he was far enough. Eren looked down at his hand and froze up, keeping his hand held near his mouth but not biting. "Any time now, Eren" Hanji called to him but he remained still "You can do it Eren, we know you can and you'll be fine!" Armin called out to try and help his friends' nerves.

Eren knew he could and needed to transform but he was scared about not returning to normal again. Just as he was about to put his arm down someone else spoke up "you will transform, that's an order Eren!" Captain Levi was now standing with the rest, he had on a 3DMG with extra straps to help keep the pressure off his injuries again and no sword box's. Eren turned to face everyone and spoke "but what if I can't return to normal this time?!" "You can" Armin and Mikasa said in unison "you will" the Captain said "and that's an order too" he added. Eren understood that the Captain was cheering him on, in his own cold way and nodded, raising his hand to his mouth once again. Eren found a more personal goal this time I will prove that I'm not a monster Eren thought calmly as he breathed in and bit down on his left hand. The five that were standing shielded their eyes as a flash of light and smoke covered Eren, when they lowered their arms they could see the 15 meter titan standing before then. Captain Levi moved first, striding up to Eren and then yelled for him to kneel down, pointing to the ground. Eren nodded and lowered himself to one knee and held out an open hand, expecting the Captain to hop on. Levi walked up to Eren's open hand and raised his own to it, not to pull himself up but to smack it away, to little effect. Pulling the trigger on his bladeless hilt Levi shot up onto Eren's shoulder and then sat down cross-legged and planted his cables into Eren's shoulder for extra support. "Armin! Jean! I want you two on either side for me for extra support" Levi barked out and the two teens ran forward and then swung onto Eren. Once they were beside Levi they planted their own cables into Eren's shoulder, Armin who was to Levi's left shot his right cable out past Levi behind him and Jean shot his left cable in front of Levi. Hanji grabbed Mikasa's hand calling from them to get on Eren's left shoulder.

Once all five were secure on Eren's shoulders Captain Levi shouted "Up!" and Eren carefully stood up, trying his best not to disturb the people on his shoulders. The five humans looked around their surroundings, unless on top of the walls they couldn't see over the treetops. "Start running laps" Levi said clearly to Eren who nodded and ran slow at first. Last night it had taken Eren fifteen minutes to lap the castle once at full speed now it only took five at a light jog in his titan form. Hanji was shouting something at Levi but Eren couldn't make out their conversation, it was moving too fast and was too complicated for him to understand in this forum. After a while Levi gave another command "Eren, Speed up!" Eren nodded to show he understood and picked up his pace a bit, still not going near his full speed for the sake of those on his shoulders. "Stop" Captain Levi shouted and Eren came to a slow halt, trying to not jostle those on him. It had only taken a minuet now for Eren to make his way around the castle and he lapped it ten times before Levi gave the command. Eren turned his head to the left to see the Captain as best he could and saw that the Captain was looking back at him "I. Want. You. Too. Run. The. Whole. Area. Of. The. Castle. Ground." Levi had spoken each word as loud and clearly as he could so Eren would understand the command. Eren tilted his head, not sure if he caught the entire request. Levi then thrust out his right arm and pointed to the edge of the small forest behind the castles field and then continued to draw a circle around the area. Eren then nodded and walked out to the edge of the castle round and then started running at a light pace. After a few hours Eren's pace was slowing down and Levi shouted out "Enough" and pointed to the front field and Eren walked back to where he started.

"I'll need a hand down" Eren looked to the Captain and nodded, understanding the words hand and down. Eren got to one knee and lifted his left hand to his right shoulder and saw Armin and Jean assist Levi onto Eren's hand. Once they were in his hand Eren slowly lowered his hand to the ground and saw the three hopped off. Once they were down Eren lifted his right hand to his other shoulder for Hanji and Mikasa. The five stood back as Eren's titan form started to break down. The flesh that clung to Eren's human body started to melt away, steam rising all around the human Eren. Eren looked up once his face was free from the flesh and saw red fade away as the titan's skin fell back and Eren saw the sky from the opening. Eren pulled himself free of the last bit of flesh and made his way out through the opening, his body hot from the steam around him. Once free of the titan's body Eren saw he was still several feet off the ground. Flipping himself over Eren climbed down the large body, slipping after a few feet he fell to the ground with a thud. Pain surged through his right leg and the rest of his body, the leg broke from the fall. Mikasa and Hanji rushed to Eren when they saw him fall and the rest joined in when they saw him clutching his right leg. The five surrounded Eren and Hanji spoke first "looks to be broken, how do you feel Eren?" She asked with genuine concern. "It hurts, a lot and I'm tired from the transformation so I feel like shit" Eren said plainly as Mikasa lowered herself to Eren and began to apply pressure to the leg. "Someone go inside and get a splint!" She called out to the rest and Armin nodded and ran in, calling for Jean to help him. The three that remained behind turned to Eren to see if there was anything else they could do to help him. Mikasa quickly removed her hand from Eren's leg as it became hot to the touch, Eren was feeling too drowsy to notes the pain anymore. That or it may have been the fact that the pain was fading away as steam rose from the injured leg.

Hanji quickly bent down and put her shoulder under Eren's right arm to help him up "quick Eren let's get you seated over at my research." Mikasa was about to toss the woman across the field but Eren got up with her help and soon found her pulling away with him. Eren hobbled along with Hanji at first but she pulled herself from him as they got close to the table, causing Eren to set his right leg down finding that it didn't hurt any more. Hanji looked over to Eren with a wide grin "legs all better I take it?" she was already filling up paper with her notes. Eren was groggy he wanted to sleep but Hanji was keeping him from doing so, Mikasa was behind him now and she led Eren to the empty seat. Hanji was asking endless questions again and Eren felt like he might as well still be in the titan as he couldn't understand her again. This caused Eren's head to jolt up and he quickly felt his face, his hand covering his ears, hair, nose and chin. He was relieved to find that everything was normal and with a sigh of relief, Eren lowered his head and drifted off. Jean and Armin had returned shorty after with the splint but were informed that Eren had already healed by Levi. "Like a damned lizard" the Captain intoned causing Hanji to turn her attention to him "jealous much?" she said with a grin. It was well past sunset when Eren came to, glad that this time he wouldn't be shocked by his surroundings. The five others were still there when he came to, he was actually surprised that the Captain would let them wait for him. "We'll be leaving shortly after dinner" the Captain told Eren and got a confused look in return. "Is your brain still as small as a titan's? I thought I told you to return to normal!" Levi sighed and then elaborated "The meeting with those shit head from the MP is tomorrow." Eren then nodded in comprehension and quickly added "yes, sir" Eren then stood up as the other stood. Captain Levi gave Eren an incredulous look as he stood "Sir?" Eren asked but Levi just turned his back to Eren and made his way into the castle. Eren could see that the Captain still had his 3DMG harness on, with the extra straps and Eren thought that perhaps the Captain was annoyed that he could recover from his injury so quickly well the Captain still has days to go.

Dinner was a quick affair as Hanji and Levi needed to gather up their notes for Commander Erwin and left the four teens with an hour to gather what they would need for the next day. Once all six were prepared they made their way to the side stable where Hanji's men were prepping the horses for their side into the inner walls. Levi called for Jean to help him get their items loaded into the cart and Hanji called for Eren, Armin and Mikasa to come with her to another part of the stable. Once the three were standing across from Hanji she took out some of the reports and read them to the three teens under the light of a few lanterns. "The results of Annie's full background check finally came in… Among the trainees of the 104th trainee squad, there are two more people originating from the same area as her." Eren gave a stern look well Armin put on his traveling cloak as Hanji turned the page. "Ryner Braun and Bertholdt Fubar" Eren's face lit with shock "huh?" was the only response he could think of. Hanji read o, pulling another report out to read them both "Ah, well, we have to take into account the fact that due to the chaos five years ago all the family register documents are more than a little sloppy and sketchy… It seems it took them this long just to dig their way through all those poorly organised data." Hanji continued on "according to the bluff-out-the-enemy plan, during our expedition to the outer lands the two I mentioned were in the group that was told that Eren was on the right flank. Annie Leonhardt "the female type" came to attack from the right flank as well." Hanji looked up to the three as she continued "now, just for the record, this alone doesn't really mean anything yet. I'd like to know more about the relationship between the three of them during their trainee days, though."

The conversation with Hanji continued on as they rode into the inner walls, by the end Eren had a lot on his mind. What Armin had said about Ryner and Annie, how more of his friends could not only be traitors but the one's responsible for so much death, including his mother. Eren shook his head, not sure what to think anymore. He was still tired from the day and even though everything was normal on the outside, he still seemed weak from his transformation. It seemed this was a different after effect, weakness from pushing himself and not getting enough sleep, healing a broken leg didn't help the recovery process ether. Over the past two days he had transformed multiple times and the last time, well not fighting he remained a titan for hours on end. No, the first transformation two days ago was to fight Annie so he had every right to be worn out. Eren was wishing he could side in the cart with Captain Levi and Jean but it was too late for that, holding up his torch in one hand and the reins in his other he rode on. A new though popped up in the back of Eren's mind, though he tried not to pay it much attention as this thought involved Ryner and Bertholdt to be guilty of being the titans. If this were true then he thought it would be Bertholdt who was the colossal type, as he was the tallest person Eren had ever known, even taller than the commander. Ryner would then have to be the armored type as he was the most well-built, second strongest only to Mikasa but still way above the rest. This triggered Eren's concerns from last night, what if he starting taking on his titan's traits as a human? Eren tried to brush it off as a coincidence, after all, how could monsters like that pretend to be human…

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**AN: And there we are! I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read this! Some end notes: I didn't use Hanji's full conversation as it spans like 6 pages and we don't need a transcript, right? Most of what happens after chapter 34 is a flashback until they get to wall rose so that's why I placed this story between chapters 34 and 37 and Jean is M.I.A in the manga from chapter 34 until chapter 45 where he shows up with the other members of the scouting legion and MP's so that's why I had him in the story, seeing as he wasn't held for observation. About Levi's injury; that exact nature of his injury is never made clear so I amuse he can use a 3DMG with extra caution but not in action. I tried my best to keep everyone as in character as possible and I hope you enjoyed my little story, the idea for it came from this piece of fan art art/Eren-Titan-AOT-379028386 and after seeing that no one had played with this idea in story form. **

**As for whats next for me? a SnK crossover/AU with Haibane Renmei, though this is still in the idea stage and will be at least a week before release **


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